Yesterday I noticed that Raja had this weird lump on his side and FREAKED out. Then I notice it had a WORM in it. I keep telling myself that there wasn't much I could do, he died today. I'm not getting any more bettas ATM. Just frustrated and they are dropping like flies. RIP my beautiful boy...

I'm so sad to have lost such a beautiful boy. I'm down to 11 and it feels so empty, but oh well... I'll build up the numbers later.

ok question and i am not sorry for your loss, sorry i just feel you could have prevented it if you were more careful and do daily check up on them from now on.

1. do you use Aquarium salt for your Bettas?

2. do you feed your Betta's Live food or frozen foods?

3. how often did you change your Betta's water?

and lastly i hope you always check your Betta's ammonia/nitrite/nitrate level along with PH. i have a spare 10 gallon tank that stores water for aging for the next water change and do water change every 1 day after. i also use Turkey Baster for easier bottom tank cleaning gently without having to net my Betta's and put them in little Bowl. believe it or not aquarium salt is like a firewall that prevents all sorts of water bacterial diseases if not all of them. you lost 1 of your Betta and that was a wake up call, take the steps you need to make sure the survival for the rest of your Betta's, hope my suggestions helped. been there done that, i remember when i lost my first precious Betta, after that it changed me and i will never let my Betta's die without a fight with all the gross diseases out there. so don't ever give up on your little friend just cause they look deformed, only one that can help them recover from their state is only you, nobody else is going to come up to your Betta and help him recover, you are their only hope from the moment you bring them in to your house. if you give up, they will never stand a chance of surviving even if it is that little 00.01% chance. Aquarium salt, they are a magical property, consider using aquarium salt from now on if you didn't use it till now for your Betta's.

^^^ that was a lovely paragraph FBA, but this is Doggyhog, an absolute pro when it comes to bettas.

if something happens that fast it is IMPOSSIBLE to cure it. FACT. these are fish that are not like humans that can withstand major illnesses. so no, its not all about fighting for a betta and doing everything right but its a luck thing too.

@DH, if i were you id treat all my fish for internal parasites just in case.

believe it or not aquarium salt is like a firewall that prevents all sorts of water bacterial diseases

Aquarium salt, they are a magical property, consider using aquarium salt from now on if you didn't use it till now for your Betta's.

I'm not going to point out and address the first sentence of your post, as we all know it was a rude thing to say.

I did want to point out, in case anyone was confused by your post, that aquarium salt, in this instance, would not have been the "magical cure" in this particular case. This was a parasite issue, not a "bacterial disease". I can only assume you missed the part of doggyhog post where she stated that there was a worm in the lump. Metronidazole would have been the medication to have been used here, not salt. Even had metro been used it may have been too late anyway. These things sometimes happen, despite the best care we can give.